Wolfgang Hampel. Founder of Betty MacDonald Fan Club and Betty MacDonald Society for Betty MacDonald Fans all over the world.
Wolfgang Hampel interviewed Betty MacDonald's family and other famous writers and artists.
Wolfgang Hampel's Betty MacDonald and Ma and Pa Kettle biography and Betty MacDonald Interviews are very popular all over the world.
Wolfgang Hampel is also famous for his satirical poems and stories.

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You can vote for your favourite Betty MacDonald book cover.Deadline: June 30, 2016Betty MacDonald fan club book cover contest winner will be owner of a signed first
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Great Betty MacDonald fan club ESC news will be published on Betty MacDonald fan club blog.It's a fact that Italy, Spain, Portugal and Germany have been robbed winning Eurovision Song Contest several times.

A
wonderful Betty MacDonald fan club ESC surprise for Betty MacDonald fan
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Romania should take part because it's a great song. Wishing you a very nice Sunday,

(Picture: YouTube)For the first time in the 61 year history of the Eurovision Song Contest, a country has been expelled from the competition.Romania has been thrown out of the competition after its national
broadcaster TVR failed to make payments to the European Broadcasting
Union (the organisers of the Eurovision Song Contest) that date as far
back as 2007.Romania have one of the strongest Eurovision Song Contest records,
having a 100% record for qualifying for the Eurovision final. They were
due to take part in the Second Eurovision Song Contest semi final on
Thursday 12th May. The running order of the show will not be recast following Romania’s elimination.

Ovidiu Anton was due to represent Romania with his pop-rock entry
Moment of Silence. Romania will be silent for a lot longer than a
moment. Ovidiu promoted the song at the London Eurovision Party on Sunday and was expected to reach a strong position in the Eurovision final on May 14th.In a statement released moments ago on the European Broadcasting Union website, it says:

TVR will now no longer be able to participate in the 2016
Eurovision Song Contest and will lose access to other EBU member
services including the Eurovision News and Sports News Exchanges, the
right to broadcast specific sporting events, legal, technical and
research expertise and lobbying services.

Romanian national broadcaster TVR’s debts to the EBU date back to
2007 and with no other Romanian broadcaster a member of the European
Broadcasting Union, it is unlikely that Romania will return to the
Eurovision Song Contest for a number of years.‘This is of course disappointing for the artist chosen to represent
Romania, for our colleagues at TVR who have prepared their participation
so well this year and, not least, for Romanian viewers and the many
Eurovision fans in the country,’ says Jon Ola Sand, Executive Supervisor
of the Eurovision Song Contest on behalf of the EBU.Asked what this means for host broadcaster SVT, Sand replied: ‘As
with all participants, SVT has been preparing for Romania’s act
thoroughly over the past weeks. To take an act out at such late stage is
of course a little disruptive, but it will not negatively affect the
2016 Eurovision Song Contest in any other way.’Romania at the Eurovision Song ContestRomania have twice finished third at the Eurovision Song Contest, in
2005 with Luminita Anghel & Sistem with the song Let Me Try and in
2010 with Paula Selling & Ovi and their entry Playing with Fire.Their 2006 entry Tornero by Mihai became one of the biggest summer
chart and club hits across Europe in 2006. Mihai took part in the
Romanian national final again this year, losing out to Ovidiu.In 2011, Romania was represented by Hotel FM featuring British singer
David Bryan. They campaigned extensively in the United Kingdom but
failed to pick up any points from the UK, finishing 4th in their semi final, but only 17th in the final.

He may be known as Mr Melodifestivalen, but Christer Björkman has
said the UK should stop mocking the Eurovision Song Contest and enter
the semi-finals if they’re to have any chance of winning the contest
again.Speaking to i News at
a London lecture ahead of Stockholm’s Polar Music Prize, the Eurovision
2016 producer says Joe and Jake’s entry “You’re Not Alone” would
continue the UK’s recent Eurovision struggles, and commentary from the
late Sir Terry Wogan was also to blame.

“Joe and Jake is a fairly good song
and the boys are charming. It’s a step in the right direction but no, it
won’t win. If you sent another Katrina singing “Love Shine a Light”,
that would make a huge difference.”

“Terry Wogan did the commentary for
25 years and it was always mocking. Now Graham Norton also has this
flippant tone. It doesn’t work. It’s a lot easier to joke than to win.”

Björkman also suggested the UK should give up their Big 5 status and compete at the semi-finals.

“I can understand why you
don’t risk taking that step but if you look at the songs that travel,
they start in the semi-final and they become stronger and stronger
during the week. Conchita wasn’t even mentioned as one of the favourites
before the semi-final and then she became a shooting star – that’s only
because she revealed herself before. And you need to do that.”

Christer Björkman has dismissed claims of block voting, which has often been brought up in the UK, urging the country to instead start taking the Eurovision Song Contest seriously.

“[Block voting] is something
you’ve made up. You sound like the French now. We all love you. We all
want you to be good in this competition. It’s just that you don’t send
any good stuff. Why don’t you?”

“You have to say ‘we are taking
this seriously and we will not stop doing it until we succeed. You have
to accept what Eurovision is – it’s not a singing competition or a song
competition, it is music entertainment.”

He also added a British version of Melodifestivalen judged by Simon Cowell would improve the quality of the UK entries.

Do you agree with him? Should the UK start taking the Eurovision Song Contest more seriously?

Donald Trump has waded into the Brexit debate by stating that Britain would be "better off without" the European Union. The Republican presidential candidate, said "migration has been a horrible thing for Europe" and that Britain should leave. His statement came as David Cameron vowed to oppose Mr Trump's Muslim ban if the billionaire becomes president."I think the migration has been a horrible thing for Europe. A lot of that was pushed by the EU," Mr Trump said."I would say they are better off without it, personally, but I'm not making that as a recommendation, just my feeling."I know Great Britain very well, I know the country very well, I have a lot of investments there."I would say that they are better off without it, but I want them to make their own decision."Mr Trump's comments came two weeks after President Barack Obama,
writing in The Daily Telegraph, urged Britain to stay in the EU when it
votes on June 23.Earlier this week, Mr Trump criticised Barack Obama for supporting Mr Cameron in his campaign for Britain to remain in the EU."I didn't think it was a good thing for him to do it," he said.Mr Trump had previously indicated he would not take sides in the Brexit debate.He said in March: "I don't want to make a comment about the UK
leaving, but I think they may leave based on - I'm there a lot, I have a
lot of investments in the UK and I will tell you that I think they may
leave based on everything I'm hearing."

Mr Cameron said at a press
conference on Thursday that he "respects" Mr Trump for “making it
through the gruelling nature of the primaries” and becoming the
Republican candidate at November’s election.Mr Trump's call for a ban on Muslims entering the US came in response
to the Isil-inspired terrorist attack in San Bernardino, California.He called late last year for a “total and complete shutdown of
Muslims entering the United States” until “we are able to determine and
understand this problem and the dangerous threat it poses”.He went on to claim that parts of London are "so radicalised" that police officers are "afraid for their own lives".Appearing at a press conference with Japanese premier Shinzo Abe in
Downing Street, Mr Cameron was asked if he owed Mr Trump “an apology”.

Turkish leader hits back at Europe on anti-terrorism laws

Turkey’s
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan waves to supporters as he leaves a
mosque in Istanbul following Friday prayers, Friday, May 6, 2016.
Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, who had fallen out with Erdogan,
announced his resignation on Thursday, paving the way for Erdogan to
pursue a tighter grip on power. (Lefteris Pitarakis/Associated Press)

By Dominique Soguel | APMay 6

ISTANBUL
— Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had harsh words Friday for
Europe, saying his nation won’t reform its anti-terrorism legislation
just for the sake of getting visa-free travel for its citizens there.The
tough talk comes at a time when moderate Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu
has stepped down, a move that Erdogan’s critics fear will help the
president further consolidate his power.As part of an agreement
in which Turkey will help halt the flood of migrants and refugees from
the Middle East, the European Union asked the nations in the bloc to
allow Turkish citizens to travel to Europe without visas on short stays.
In exchange, the EU wants Turkey to meet certain conditions, among them
a revision of its harsh anti-terrorism laws.But Erdogan has
been pressing for quite the opposite: He wants Turkish law to impose a
broader definition of terrorism at a time when the country faces the
twin threats of renewed conflict with Kurdish militants in the southeast
and growing blowback from Syria and Iraq in the form of bombings and
other attacks by the Islamic State group. “The EU at the moment
is saying, ‘you will change your anti-terrorism law for visas,’” Erdogan
said in an unusually tough speech in Istanbul.Addressing
European leaders, he countered: “You allow terrorists to set up tents
next to the European Parliament. Why don’t you change your mindset?”That
was a reference to symbols of the Kurdistan Worker’s Party that Turkish
officials say were seen recently at demonstrations and in tents set up
outside the European Parliament. The group, known as the PKK, has waged a
decades-long insurgency in Turkey and is designated by Ankara and its
allies to be a terrorist organization. “You will allow
terrorists to set up tents, say you are doing it in the name of
democracy, and then tell us to change our terrorism law for visas,”
Erdogan said. “We’ll go our way, you go yours,” he added, sharply. “Go make your agreement with whoever you can.”The
EU, which needs Turkey’s help on the migrant crisis, is not in the best
position to pressure Erdogan to pursue reforms on any front.While
anti-terrorism laws have been widely used to silence his critics — much
to the alarm of domestic and international human rights groups — Turkey
also has suffered an unpreceded wave of deadly suicide bombings linked
either to the PKK or IS.There was no immediate reaction from EU
officials on whether they would relax their demand for reform of the
anti-terrorism legislation. Turkey still must meet five of 72 criteria
to qualify for the visa-free travel plan, and the European Parliament
and the EU Council are expected to reach a decision on the matter in
June,Gianni Pittella of Italy, leader of the
Socialist group of deputies in the European Parliament, tweeted in
response: “No change on anti-terror law? No rush then for EU to deliver
on Ankara visa request.”Erdogan’s announcement could doom the
carefully crafted and long-negotiated migrant deal, said Amanda Paul,
senior policy analyst and Turkey specialist at the European Policy
Center, an independent Brussels think tank. “If he’s serious,
and if Turkey has no intention of changing what currently exists, which
is obviously not acceptable to the EU, then it looks like we are facing a
possible collapse of the migration deal, which is obviously a very
serious issue,” Paul said. “Erdogan is really pushing the EU against the wall,” she said.Earlier
Friday, German government spokesman Georg Streiter said the migrant
accord “is in the common interest of the EU and Turkey.” “The EU
and Germany will continue to fulfill all agreed commitments, and we
also expect this from the Turkish side,” he said. “It isn’t an agreement
between the EU and Mr. Davutoglu; it’s an agreement between the EU and
Turkey.”Davutoglu, who had better ties than Erdogan with the EU
and was a key negotiator in the migrant and visa deals, stepped down
Thursday over a rift with the president.His resignation was seen
to result from his differences with Erdogan over key questions,
including possibly resuming peace talks with Kurdish militants, freedom
of the press, and more crucially, Davutoglu’s lukewarm support for
reshaping Turkey into a presidential system.
“In order to be strong, we need to rapidly present a presidential
system which is the guarantee of stability and trust to the approval of
the people,” Erdogan said.Many political observers see
Davutoglu’s decision to step down as another indication that Erdogan
will stop at nothing to garner more power. They see a complex but
transparent plan to shake up the government and set the stage for early
elections. Such a vote could give the ruling Justice and Development
Party, or AKP, the crushing parliamentary majority needed to amend the
constitution and turn Turkey into a presidential system. “The
whole situation is frankly very worrying,” Paul said. “It’s almost like
we’re coming toward a civilian coup d’etat. ... You could never imagine
this a few years ago. You have the military, who has always been blamed
for this sort of thing, sitting in the barracks, while President Erdogan
is carrying on in a very dangerous fashion.”Analysts predict
that Davutoglu will be replaced by a more pliable figure who will
promote a presidential system. Critics have long feared that too much
power could end up in the hands of a president displaying an
increasingly authoritarian style.German lawmaker Norbert
Roettgen called Davutoglu’s resignation “bad news for Europe” because,
unlike Erdogan, the premier wanted to move Turkey in the direction of
Europe and was willing to break ranks on key issues. “In all the
important questions — fighting corruption, limiting the president’s
power, the Kurdish question, press freedom — Davutoglu developed a
different direction,” he said.Also on Friday, in a trial widely
viewed as a test for press freedom in Turkey, prominent journalists Can
Dundar and Erdem Gul were convicted of revealing state secrets and
sentenced to five years in prison for reporting on alleged government
arms smuggling to Syria. Erdogan was a plaintiff in the case.There
has been no major uproar inside Turkey over the possibility that it
could be sliding toward dictatorship. Analysts say that’s because
Erdogan continues to enjoy a high degree of popularity — not just within
the ruling party that he founded, but also with the broader public.
They point to the long history of electoral success by Erdogan and the
AKP.Even
in Davutoglu’s hometown of Konya, there were banners of support for the
visibly downcast premier, but also pledges of allegiance to Erdogan.

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For
some in Turkey, the stakes might be too high at a time where nearly
2,000 people risk legal action for insulting the president. “No
other leader can exist in a country with Erdogan,” said Istanbul
resident Yalcin Gurgen. “Since he is the center of power, it does not
mean anything whether Davutoglu stays or resigns, or someone else
comes.”___Associated Press writers Suzan Fraser in
Ankara, Bram Janssen in Istanbul, John-Thor Dahlburg in Brussels and
Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed to this report.

About Me

Betty MacDonald Fan Club, founded by Wolfgang Hampel, has members in 40 countries.
Wolfgang Hampel, author of Betty MacDonald biography interviewed Betty MacDonald's family and friends. His Interviews have been published on CD and DVD by Betty MacDonald Fan Club. If you are interested in the Betty MacDonald Biography or the Betty MacDonald Interviews send us a mail, please.
Several original Interviews with Betty MacDonald are available.
We are also organizing international Betty MacDonald Fan Club Events for example, Betty MacDonald Fan Club Eurovision Song Contest Meetings in Oslo and Düsseldorf, Royal Wedding Betty MacDonald Fan Club Event in Stockholm and Betty MacDonald Fan Club Fifa Worldcup Conferences in South Africa and Germany.
Betty MacDonald Fan Club Honour Members are Monica Sone, author of Nisei Daughter and described as Kimi in Betty MacDonald's The Plague and I, Betty MacDonald's nephew, artist and writer Darsie Beck, Betty MacDonald fans and beloved authors and artists Gwen Grant, Letizia Mancino, Perry Woodfin, Traci Tyne Hilton, Tatjana Geßler, music producer Bernd Kunze, musician Thomas Bödigheimer, translater Mary Holmes and Mr. Tigerli.